South Carolina launches new childcare fee assistance program for military families

A new program was introduced in South Carolina that will help military families find affordable and accessible childcare in their communities.

Military families across the state can now access a new resource for childcare fee assistance through Military Child Care in Your Neighborhood-PLUS (MCCYN-PLUS), which was officially launched during a press conference on Aug. 1.

"Today's announcement marks the culmination of over 18 months of work by staff at DSS, South Carolina Department of Veterans' Affairs and the Department of Defense to add South Carolina to the list of states,” said South Carolina Department of Social Services Director Michael Leach at the press conference. “Military families across South Carolina will now be able to choose the installation, childcare off installation, childcare facilities that are participating in ABC Quality, the state's rating and improvement system."

The statewide program, established by the Department of Defense, is available to eligible active-duty military personnel, National Guard members, reservists and civilians employed by the Department of Defense.

In South Carolina, there are 33,698 active-duty service members and 24,443 National Guard and reserve members, according to Military OneSource.

The childcare fee assistance will help pay a portion of the military family’s out-of-pocket costs at eligible, licensed childcare and family home programs. Leach said that by offering the program, they hope to ease the burden on military families and ensure their children receive the care they need.

Childcare providers are eligible to sign up for the MCCYN-PLUS program if they meet the following criteria:

Must be state-licensed, must meet eligibility criteria outlined by the military branches and the Department of Defense, must have a state licensing inspection in the last 12 months, must complete an FBI background check

The program is also available in 15 other states, which include Arkansas, Colorado, Kentucky, Maryland, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

Families can choose eligible licensed childcare and family home programs that have at least a B+ rating through ABC Quality, South Carolina's quality rating and improvement system. Currently, there are about 200 approved providers across the state.

To learn more about MCCYN-PLUS click here .